Harry Potter and the Samurai Wizard
by Ichigaki Kyo
Summary: Ever wonder what Japanese wizards look like? Answer inside...based in Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Samurai Wizard features oc characters and a brand new take on one of J.K. Rowling's most popular books.
1. Prologue

Harry Potter and the Samurai Wizard

Prologue

My name is KyoIchigaki. I was a scribe working for Lord Kaduki in the Tosa province of Japan, on one of the southern-most islands. What follows is an account I took of a mission one of Kaduki-sama's samurai took on his orders. I write this account at the request of that samurai, so that all will know of his courage, and the reason for his death.

Nikada Kusuke stood at attention outside the spectator's box, keeping a sharp lookout. It was his job to make sure that Kaduki-sama was not disturbed while he and his wife enjoyed the Quidditch World Cup, and as much as Kusuke wished he was in the box watching the match himself, he had a job to do.

On the other side of the door stood Kusuke's partner and long-time friend, Midori Nasema. Like Kusuke, she was dressed in a samurai hakama and wore a pair of swords at her hip, and her hair was done up in a topknot. Such was the standard uniform for their centuries-old profession, although Kusuke and Midori carried much less visible weapons hidden up their sleeves.

"I still can't believe that Ireland beat us out." Midori complained quietly.

"Me neither, but there it is." Kusuke agreed. The Japan-Ireland match had been an embarrassment, almost to the point that the players would have committed seppuku had the Japanese Minister of Magic not intervened.

Midori glanced to her right, where the match was already in progress. "How long do you think the match will go?"

"Not long. Krum is too good of a Seeker; even if the Bulgarians can't keep the lead, he'll find the Snitch before too long. Unless the Snitch escapes the stadium…"

"Oh, no you don't!" Midori said, getting stern. "The last time you pulled _that_ trick, the players spent a whole week on their broomsticks, and when you got caught you were given 70 lashes, you remember?"

Kusuke rolled his shoulders uncomfortably. Of course he remembered the lashings. But he had been young and stupid, then. "I'm just saying…"

Midori sighed, which caused a lock of her long black hair to fall out of place; the effect looked rather cute on her. "Sorry, it's just that we never know with you."

::Good.:: Kusuke thought. He prided himself on being unpredictable…chaotic. The less he could be predicted, the less he could be planned for and countered. It had been a godsend on quite a few missions.

Midori's eyes, for the millionth time, strayed to Kusuke's head. "You need to grow your hair out, you know. Your father loses a little face every time someone asks why you don't wear a topknot.

"The gods know I'm trying. But it seems like no matter what I do, it just goes back to this length." And it was true. Kusuke had even asked his mother to magically grow it, but for a reason nobody understood, his hair resisted even that. It stubbornly remained only a few inches long, nowhere near long enough to tie into a topknot like every other samurai.

The two samurai were pulled out of their conversation by the sound of approaching footsteps, and they each snapped back to attention. Coming up the wooden corridor was the British Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, twirling his lime green bowler hat. Didn't the man ever just wear that thing?

"Good evening, Minister." Midori said with a cordial smile. "How can we help you?"

The Minister stopped short, surprised to see guards. The fool. He almost never went anywhere without a procession of Aurors, yet he expected a daimyo of Japan to go without protection? Not that he needed it, mind you, but it was protocol. "Oh, no, thank you, I can handle it."

Fudge attempted to reach the door. Kusuke calmly but swiftly sidestepped in front of it, again surprising the British Minister. Fudge's surprise turned to anger. "Now, see here—"

"Is there a problem, Minister?"

"You know there is! I need to speak to Mr. Kaduki, and—"

"_Lord _Kaduki," Kusuke said firmly, meeting Fudge's eyes, "is enjoying the match. Perhaps if your business was important enough, I would go in and ask if he can spare the time to see you."

"My business is none of your concern, now let me through."

Fudge attempted to push Kusuke to the side. Baaaad idea. With the ring of steel, Kusuke had an inch of his shorter sword, his wakizashi, clear of its scabbard. Already Kusuke was considering the most efficient manner of killing this potential threat to Kaduki-sama…simply slicing Fudge's throat would probably be the best manner, since Fudge was too close to curse.

Fudge's eyes went wide with mingled shock and indignation. "You dare-?"

"Minister," Midori said soothingly. She hadn't left her station. "Please consider our position. Kaduki-sama hand-picked us to guard his box so that he and his wife could enjoy the match without worrying about being attacked. If we let you just walk in, even being the British Minister of Magic, we would have betrayed Kaduki-sama's trust. How could we show our faces after that? I mean, you wouldn't want one of your Aurors to let Kaduki-sama in to see you unannounced, would you?"

Fudge seemed to lose a little of his ire. "No, I suppose not."

To meet Fudge's concession, Kusuke sheathed the inch of steel and put his hand back to his side. "Now if you'll tell me your business, I'll be happy to ask if Kaduki-sama can see you."

"I came to discuss with Kaduki—er, I mean, Lord Kaduki," Fudge corrected when he saw Kusuke's eyes suddenly flare with anger, "increasing the amount of silk his province will trade to us next month."

"In that case, please pardon me a moment."

Kusuke turned and knocked on the door.

"Enter," came a deep voice from inside.

Kusuke opened the door and slipped inside, closing it behind him in the Minister's face.

Inside the spectator's box there were no chairs, simply a short wooden platform covered with a silk tapestry depicting the sea god, Shinryu. On that were several darkly colored pillows, upon which Asuma Kaduki-sama and his wife, Orihime, sat, watching the World Cup. Lining two of the walls were six samurai, all watching the door in case someone barged in. Kaduki-sama was watching the match through his Omnioculars, while his wife simply sat caressing her swollen belly. Lady Kaduki didn't really care for Quidditch, but she didn't mind watching the match with her husband. Even though they had been married for twelve years, Lady Kaduki had only just recently become with child, and it was long feared that she was unable to conceive. Now that she was finally with child, nobody was taking any chances whatsoever; she was protected even more heavily than Kaduki-sama.

"Yes, Kusuke-kun?"Kaduki-sama of course spoke in Japanese, but for the sake of those reading this account, I shall translate to English.

Kusuke fell to one knee. "My lord, Minister Fudge is outside the door, wishing to speak with you about the planned silk trade next month."

"Horsehockey." (Kaduki-sama actually said something far stronger, but I thought it best to tone it down a bit for this account.)

"Yes, sir."

"Whatever he wants, I'm sure it can wait until after the match is over."

"As you wish, my Lord. What should I tell him?"

Lady Kaduki spoke up. "Tell him that he is caring for me at the moment."

Kusuke blushed profusely. "Y-yes, my lady."

"Dismissed."

Kusuke rose and left the room, opening the door only as little as he could, and shutting it behind him.

"Well?" Fudge asked impatiently.

"Kaduki-sama is currently tending to Lady Kaduki's delicacy, and wishes to not be disturbed." Even though it was a lie, just the idea still had Kusuke blushing like a radish.

Kusuke expected Fudge to be shocked at this information. Instead, the man seemed infuriated, as though Lady Kaduki needed to hurry up and give birth so that Fudge could have his audience with Kaduki-sama. "Well, when he's done, tell him I want to speak with him!" He turned on his heel and stormed off.

Midori raised an eyebrow as he went out of earshot. "I do not envy these Britains their Minister of Magic."

"Hmph." Kusuke returned to his spot, and crossed his arms. "I think I'd have to commit seppuku if I had to spend more than a week here."

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

Kusuke ran.

Through the howls, and the flames, and the flying curses, Kusuke ran, desperately seeking Midori.

The attack had come out of nowhere. A bunch of men—or women for all Kusuke could tell—wearing black hoods and silvery masks had strolled by in a mob, setting fire to nearby tents and floating three poor muggles with their wands. At the first sign of trouble, Kaduki-sama had been escorted, guarded by all his samurai save for Kusuke and Midori, whom he had sent to try to help the Ministry of Magic. But something had gone wrong.

Kusuke wasn't even sure who had sent the curse, but it had hit Midori square in the face, and then she had vanished. Not made invisible…vanished. Now Kusuke was looking for her, trying to find out if she was safe. He had even done what he thought he'd never have a good reason to do: he had abandoned Kaduki-sama's orders.

Off to his left he spotted three young teenagers running towards the forest encircling the remains of the city of tents. More importantly, beyond them, Kusuke thought he could see a katana flash in the firelight.

::Midori!::

He ran after the flash, which brought him barreling almost right into the three. Almost, because before he could reach them, he was met by a wand pointed at his face.

Kusuke stopped in his tracks, anger rising in his heart. "Out of my way!"

"You stay away from her!" The tallest one, a redhead boy with a face full of freckles, yelled. The other boy, shorter but still taller than Kusuke, was apparently wandless and was using his body to protect the girl.

"Get out of my way you fools, I don't care about your girlfriend!"

"As well you shouldn't." Came a drawling voice nearby. Kusuke turned to see a long-haired blonde boy leaning against a nearby tree, watching the carnage at the camp. "I'd suggest you protect her well there, Weaselby, unless you want to see her knickers up in midair."

"I expect your father's one of the ones in hoods out there, Malfoy." The shorter boy spat.

The blonde boy, Malfoy, gave the speaker a knowing smile. "Well, if he was, I wouldn't very well tell you about it, now would I, Potter?"

Kusuke felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck him. Potter? THE Potter? He turned to the shorter boy, eyes staring.

Yes, he did match the descriptions Kusuke had heard…moderate height for a British teenage boy, black, unruly hair, and circular glasses. If only Kusuke could see his scar…

Kusuke pulled out his wand, which made everyone tense. Kusuke ignored them, and silently lit his wand. Pointing it at the shorter boy, Kusuke could just make out the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead.

"It…it is you…"

"Yes, it's Harry Potter." The girl said in exacerbation. "What of it?"

"…Nothing, I guess. Listen, I _must_ get by, I think my friend is deeper in those woods, and I have to find her!"

"You're not with those hooded men?" The redhead asked.

"Do you see a hood and mask on my head?"

"Well…no."

And they FINALLY stood aside. Leaving his wand lit, Kusuke ran ahead…

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

Kusuke left the woods, tired, sweaty, and panting, about half an hour later. He had found no trace of Midori, despite his best efforts and the use of some complicated magic, such as the Supersensory and Radar Charms. There were plenty of other people hiding in the woods—mostly youths likely sent there by of-age parents wanting to keep them out of harm's way—but Kusuke would have recognized Midori's unique signature. They had been childhood friends, after all.

Where was she? And what was the curse that had caused her to vanish? Kusuke was still trying to sort it out. It had looked like a simple Stunning Spell, but no Stunning Spell, regardless of how powerful, caused its victim to _vanish_. So what-?

"Did you find your friend?"

Kusuke was pulled out of his thoughts to find that he had, somehow, walked out into the clearing where Harry Potter and his friends were hiding. Since he had been gone, they had been joined by three more redheads, two stupidly-tall boys and an average-height girl. Kusuke surmised that they were relatives of the redhead that had threatened Kusuke.

"No, I didn't…" Kusuke answered the girl, who had asked the question. "She could have Disapparated, though, so I'm not too worried about it."

They all stared at him.

"What?"

"She can Disapparate?" One of the tallest redheads asked, which Kusuke realized was a twin of the one next to him.

"Yes, so what?"

"How old is she?"

"I don't see how that matters…"

"Is she older than 17?"

"No, and neither am I."

"Then why can she Disapparate?" The bushy-haired girl asked. "You can't get a Apparition liscense until you turn 17."

"Apparition liscense? What's that?" Harry Potter asked the girl.

"The Ministry of Magic requires that everyone wanting to Apparate and Disapparate must pass a test and earn a liscense. Anyone who is found Apparating without a liscense is heavily fined."

"The Ministry of Magic has no sway over Midori and I." Kusuke announced. "We're Japanese, only here for the World Cup."

There was a visible wave of realization throughout the group before Kusuke.

"But still, if your friend is as young as you," The redheaded girl said, "it's pretty impressive that she can Apparate already."

"Not really." Kusuke went ahead and sat on the grass, removing his katana in the process. "It took her four months to accomplish it. It took me just one."

Again, they all stared at him.

"It took Bill the better part of six months! How did you learn it in just one?" One of the twins asked.

"Simple. Every time I failed, I was whipped. If I wanted the pain to stop, I had to learn quickly."

Six jaws dropped.

"Whipped?" The redheaded girl asked. "That's horrible!"

"Such is the life of a Samurai Wizard." Kusuke said with a shrug. "We must learn fast and hard so that we may protect our family's Lord. And I, who came from a long line of very powerful Samurai Wizards, had very high expectations to meet. If I didn't, I would have shamed my family for generations."

"What family?" One of the twins asked. "Maybe we've heard of them."

"Oh, of course, I forgot to introduce myself." Kusuke did a short bow from his seat. "I am Kusuke Nikada, son of Hayabusa Nikada-san, Front Guard to Asuma Kaduki-sama. It is an honor to meet you."

"I'm Hermione Granger."

"We're Gred and Forge," one of the twins asked, pointing first to himself and then to the other, "this is Rinny, and that's Gon."

For some reason, Rinny found that very funny, and had to clamp her hand over her mouth to keep herself from giggling.

"Knock it off, guys!" Gon said, before turning back to Kusuke. "Ignore them, they're always playing tricks. Their names are Fred and George, I'm Ron, and that's my little sister Ginny."

"Who are you calling your _little_ sister?" Ginny asked indignantly.

"And that's—"

"Harry Potter." Harry said, holding out his hand.

For a moment Kusuke was confused as to what Harry wanted, until he remembered that this was the customary greeting among Westerners. He took Harry's hand and shook it, although Kusuke thought he may have done it a little too hard, because when Harry took his hand back, he shook it somewhat, as if to relieve pain in his hand.

"Who's that?" Hermione asked, looking off into the distance to Kusuke's right.

Looking, Kusuke saw a figure shrouded in darkness, and couldn't make out his face. The odd thing about him was he looked to be an adult, rather than a child or a teenager like most others Kusuke had seen in the forest. Before Kusuke could even consider getting up and investigating, he raised his right hand to the sky, and Kusuke saw that he was holding a wand.

"Morsmordre!"

A trail of green mist shot forward and exploded in the sky, and formed into an image…a green, glowing skull with a snake slithering from its mouth.

The effect was almost instantaneous. Kusuke heard several screams all around him, and heard the distinctive sound of pops and cracks from multiple wizards Apparating. Kusuke looked, and at the edge of the forest was a huge line of wizards…with their wands pointed straight into the forest!

Kusuke seized his wand from his right sleeve and screamed, "Descendere!"

As if a giant hand had slammed them, everybody was thrown to the ground, a split second before the wizards all yelled, "Stupefy!"

The spells fired above the group, forced to the ground by Kusuke's charm, rebounding against the trees. It seemed to go on for an hour until finally Kusuke heard a man scream, "Stop! That's my son!"

The Stunning Spells fizzled out, and the wizards approached, led by a balding red-headed man wearing glasses, his face as freckled as Ron's. When the man hugged the other redheads, Kusuke knew that he was their father.

"Who did it?" A rather hysterical man screeched, waving his wand around, sparks flying occasionally. Kusuke recognized him as Amos Diggory, the British Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. "Who conjured the Dark Mark?"

"The what?" Harry asked.

"You-Know-Who's mark!" Diggory yelled.

"What, you think we did it?" Kusuke asked.

"You were found right beneath it! Was it you?" Diggory pointed his wand in Kusuke's face, so close that Kusuke had to cross his eyes to keep it in focus.

"First of all, calm down." Kusuke said, doing his best to follow his own advice. "You'll find out nothing panicking as you are. Second," With a motion faster than any of them could've tracked, Kusuke snatched Diggory's wand away. "Don't put your wand so close to someone you're threatening, it'll just get taken away."

Kusuke tossed Diggory back his wand, and the man made a visible effort to calm himself.

"None of us conjured that image, but I think I know who did." Kusuke pointed off into the woods. "We heard a man yell from that direction, and right after the image appeared in the sky."

"And you expect us to believe such a story?"

Kusuke found himself losing his fight to keep his calm. "Think about who you're accusing, Amos Diggory. First off, you're accusing Mr. Weasley's children. Do you truly think a Ministry official would teach his children how to summon the Dark Mark, just for fun?"

"Well, no, I, er, suppose not."

"Second, you're accusing Harry Potter himself. And the idea that _he_ would conjure the Dark Mark is simply absurd.

"The only two people here that there is even the slightest possibility of conjuring the Mark is this girl, Hermione Granger, and myself, and we were all together when the Mark was conjured. So perhaps you might want to at least send some people over there to check it out?"

Without waiting for the word, a pair of wizards ran off to search the area Kusuke had pointed out.

"What's the deal, anyway?" Ron asked.

"The Dark Mark was an image You-Know-Who adopted when he rose to power here in Britain some 14 years ago." Kusuke answered. "I am told that his followers, the Death Eaters, put up the image over a place whenever they killed there."

"And those men…" Harry said, "The ones in the hoods…they were…"

"Yes," Mr. Weasley said, "Death Eaters. The ones that dodged Azkaban, I bet." He eyed Kusuke. "You seem to know an awful lot about what happened back then."

Kusuke crossed his arms and stared right back. "My father was hired by the Ministry to help track down and capture Death Eaters, and was killed pursuing that task." Hermione gasped. "He gave his life for this country. I would be a disgrace if I didn't know all I could about the era in which he died."

"We found something!" One of the wizards yelled.

The two wizards returned, carrying a small bundle. Ron's eyes widened.

"Hey, isn't that…?"

"Winky…" Hermione whispered.

The wizards set the house-elf down on the ground.

Mr. Weasely looked flabbergasted. "How in the name of Merlin's sparkly pants…?"

"Let's find out." Diggory said. He pointed his wand at Winky. "Renervate."

Winky glowed slightly for a moment, then woke up. She took a second to look around at all the witches and wizards before her eyes went wide with terror. Once she spotted one of the wizards, she burst out into wailing, such that it took a fair bit of yelling to get her calm enough to question.

"Elf, do you know who I am?" Diggory asked menacingly. Kusuke noticed that he remained standing straight rather than crouching to better address the house-elf. To her, he must have appeared utterly terrifying. Winky nodded. "Then you know better than to try to lie to me, am I correct?" Winky nodded again. "Good. Now then, elf, did you conjure the Dark Mark?"

Winky glanced fearfully up at the skull and snake. Was it Kusuke's imagination, or was the snake longer than it had been before? "No, sir, wasn't me! I is not knowing how!"

"You were found beneath it, and these children told us they heard you say the incantation."

"Wait a minute!" Hermione said urgently. "We heard a deep, male voice, Winky's is far too high!"

"Maybe she disguised her voice?" Kusuke suggested, receiving a dirty look. "What? It's what I would do."

"Well, she would still need a wand."

"She had one!" One of the wizards chimed in. He pulled a wand out of his pocket. "We found it just a couple of feet from her."

As it passed under the wandlight, Harry exclaimed, "Hey, that's my wand!"

Surprised looks all around.

"Are you saying you used this wand to conjure the Dark Mark? Is that a confession?"

"Amos!" Mr. Weasley said.

"Sorry…got carried away…"

"When did you lose your wand, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"I'm not sure, I only just noticed it missing when Kusuke showed up and we thought he was attacking us."

"I wondered why you didn't pull a wand on me like Ron did…"

"We're getting side-tracked." Diggory said firmly. He turned his attention back to Winky. "Elf, did you know that there is a very simple way of determining the spells that a wand has recently performed?" Winky shook her head fiercely, her huge bat-like ears flopping wildly. Diggory pointed the tip of his wand at the tip of Harry's and muttered, "Priori Incantatem."

As if a gavel were swinging down, a small, ghostly image of a skull with a snake slithering from its mouth floated from the tip of Harry's wand.

Winky started her wailing anew, louder than ever.

"Well, it looks like we have our culprit." Diggory said, satisfied.

"Is that right?" A bank manager said, stepping up to Diggory, who wilted. "Are you suggesting, then, that I am a Death Eater?"

Diggory paled, and for Kusuke to see it in the wandlight testifies to how much he paled. "N-no, of course not!"

"And yet, I must be, if it was my elf that conjured the Dark Mark, for who else could have taught her the incantation?"

"Ah, well, she could've picked it up anywhere…"

"Just like she did that wand, or are you accusing me now also of purchasing a wand for my house-elf?"

"N-never, sir, I know you wouldn't do that—"

"Hmph." The bank manager said. "Mr. Diggory. I know that it is usually protocol for your office to handle punishment for such an infraction. But I ask you, as a favor, to let me handle the punishment of my elf in my own way. I can assure you that she will be punished harshly."

Diggory didn't seem to like this idea in the slightest, but the bank manager seemed to be a person of very high esteem, because Diggory didn't press the matter.

"Winky…" Mr. Manager said, his face showing only fury as he glared down at the house-elf.

"M-m-m-master Crouch?"

_Crouch?_ Kusuke's eyes widened. _That guy is Bartemius Crouch?_

"You have failed me in the most grievous manner. I ordered you to stay in our tent until I returned. You did not. I also did not give you permission to possess a wand, yet you have done so. _This means clothes."_

"Nooooooooooo!" Winky cried desperately, as if Crouch had just ordered her tortured to death. "Please Master Crouch, don't do this!" She clutched at his highly-polished shoes. "I beg you, please don't do this!"

Crouch coldly kicked the house-elf off of his shoe and strode away without another word. The other wizards watched him leave; Winky sank to the ground, weeping loudly.

"Er, Amos," Mr. Weasley said, "since that wand has served its purpose, might Harry have it back now?"

"Oh, oh yes, of course." Diggory handed Harry his wand back, then held out his hand for a hand shake. "Sorry about all that. No hard feelings?"

"Er, no…" Harry shook Diggory's hand. "Of course not."

And Diggory left.

"Come on," Mr. Weasley said to the rest. "Let's get back." He looked at Kusuke. "Will you be all right?"

"…Yes, I should be fine."

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

"Would you mind explaining to me what exactly you did?"

Kusuke flinched at Kaduki-sama's voice…even though it was perfectly calm, Kusuke knew that his lord was furious with him. "I went to go search for Midori-san."

"I wasn't aware that I had ordered you to do that."

"…"

"Am I now prone to giving commands without memory of them?"

"No, my lord."

"Perhaps I gave the order, and then you modified my memory?"

"No! I would never do that!"

"Silence!"

Kusuke fell to silence again.

"How dare you go against my orders, Nikada-kun? How dare you? Are you honor-less scum?"

"…It pained me greatly to disobey you, my lord."

"Yet you still did it."

"Yes, my lord. Because it would've been an even worse pain to my honor had I let Midori-san come to harm." Kusuke raised his head from his kneel to look Kaduki-sama in the eyes. "Order my death, my lord, and you shall have it. But at least I will die knowing I did all I could to help Midori-san.

"A samurai who disobeys his lord is scum. But a man who will leave his friends to die is even worse."

Kaduki-sama eyed Kusuke for a moment, then his expression softened. "Your father taught you well."

"And you taught my father well, my lord."

Kaduki-sama stroked his chin. "You realize that I still have to punish you."

"Yes, my lord. What do you command?"

"First, I will tell you what happened to Midori-chan." He waved his hand to his right, and Midori walked in, perfectly fine. Kusuke's eyes bugged out. "She was with me the entire time. What you saw was a mere Kage Bunshin that she sent out to accompany you."

Midori bowed low to Kusuke. "Please forgive my deception. It was the only way I could think of to protect both you and Kaduki-sama."

"Next, I will tell you your punishment." Kaduki-sama tossed Kusuke a scroll, which Kusuke caught, opened, and read.

Kusuke gasped. "What?"


	2. Ch 1: Kusuke Makes a Hat Scream

Chapter 1

Kusuke Makes A Hat Scream

"Would you look at that?" Izuma-sempai said in awe.

The castle _was_ pretty impressive, Kusuke supposed, for European architecture. Kusuke had little appreciation for anything not Japanese, but not the young man striding beside Kusuke down the paved road toward the looming castle.

Natori Izuma was Kusuke's sempai. For non-Japanese readers, a sempai is a more experienced person in the same field as the speaker; the term signifies that the addressee is highly respected by the speaker, either because of age or station. Similar to business: every business has an owner, but the person who trains a new hire is usually a more experienced workman, who would be the new hire's sempai. Izuma-sempai was nine years older than Kusuke, and had been given the unenviable task of teaching Kusuke the ways of the samurai since Kusuke's father could not. Izuma-sempai also harbored a passion for foreign architecture, particularly 'Gothic' style architecture, whatever that was. Kusuke had tried asking what 'Gothic' was, but ended up getting his brain fried in twelve seconds.

"It's ugly." Kusuke answered.

Izuma-sempai stared at him, eyes as big as goose eggs. "How can you say such a thing?"

"Because it is. Look at it. There's no gardens, no trees, no artistic flair…just stone and wood thrown together. Toddlers draw pictures more beautiful than this castle, this Hogwarts."

Izuma-sempai smirked. "Not all of them. Remember the time you tried to draw Lady Kaduki?"

"…Point taken." Kusuke had been eight at the time, and Lady Kaduki had said it was the most beautiful picture of an ogre she had ever seen. Kusuke hadn't been able to raise his head for a month.

Izuma-sempai laughed and patted Kusuke's shoulder. "Don't worry, what you lack in art you make up for with you fighting." And he would know—Izuma-sempai was Kusuke's sword instructor. "By the way, you still have it, right?"

Kusuke's hand instinctively went to the hilt sticking out of his _gi_. "Yes, Sempai."

"Remember, that's a family treasure. Your father made that sword, Kagekiri, just after you were born. It cannot be replaced."

"Yes, Sempai." The sword itself looked odd, and if Izuma-sempai himself had not said that his father had made it, Kusuke wouldn't have believed it. The sheathe was a mere six inches long, but had the Spacial Expansion Charm on it so that the sword itself was full-length. Kagekiri's blade was pitch-black and covered entirely with an etching of a demonic battle. The cross-guard was a circle with a single slash through the center, and on the hilt, rising up from the white cloth wrappings, was 保護する物 in gold, meaning 'protector.' Kagekiri was said to have odd powers, the first of which was Kusuke was the only one who could touch it safely; everybody else was seized by pain that, it was said, was worse than the Cruciatus Curse. The only way for others to touch it is if it was wrapped in white silk soaked in sacred sake.

As Kusuke fingered his newly acquired sword, he thought about his father. Sasuke Nikada was a legend among Japanese wizards. His power was said to be so great that when Asunama-sama, a lord in the neighboring province of Iyo, found his daughter kidnapped by a herd of Ushi-oni, Sasuke volunteered for the mission, and slew the entire herd of 2,500 single-handedly, using only his katana. He was considered the Japanese Albus Dumbledore.

When Mikaboshi rose to power and threatened to sink Japan into darkness—

Kusuke was pulled out of his thoughts when Izuma-sempai and he reached the boundary gate and found a stooped figure standing just inside, holding perhaps the mangiest cat Kusuke had ever seen.

"And just who might you two be?" His voice was incredibly grating; Kusuke immediately wanted to hit him with a Silencing Charm.

"Natori Izuma and Nikada Kusuke. Professor Dumbledore is expecting us."

The man eyed the two of them. "Identification?"

Kusuke rolled his eyes. "You asked for it."

Kusuke made to draw his sword, but Izuma-sempai grabbed his hand, keeping the blade well in its sheathe. Kusuke got glimpse of an expression Izuma-sempai rarely used: anger. His eyes said it plainly: _You know better._

Kusuke could barely nod. Izuma-sempai was one of the only people Kusuke did his best not to get mad. The phrase 'never tickle a sleeping dragon' applied in Izuma-sempai's case.

Izuma-sempai released Kusuke's hand, and Kusuke relaxed as Izuma-sempai reached into his sleeve, pulled out a folded piece of parchment, and slid it through the bars. The man read it and handed it back, seemingly satisfied. He knocked on the gate three times, and Kusuke felt the magic sealing the gate shut weaken enough for the gate to open.

"Argus Filch, I presume?" Izuma-sempai asked.

"That's right." Filch said with the ugliest toothy grin Kusuke had ever seen. "Come with me."

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

"Here they are, Professor." Filch said to a stern-looking older witch waiting for them just inside the Entrance Hall.

"Thank you, Mr. Filch." She studied Kusukeas Filch walked away, but not in a sneering way; more like she was trying to determine if he was worth the school. "Welcome to Hogwarts, Nikada-san. I'm Professor McGonagall, and Assistant Headmistress."

Kusuke was surprised by the honorific. Usually foreigners were ignorant of how to properly address Japanese. Kusuke responded by bowing. "McGonagall-sensei. This is my superior, Natori Izuma-san."

Izuma-sempai bowed also, and McGonagall led them to the Grand Staircase silently. Kusuke was intrigued by this woman…few respected Kusuke's culture as she did.

"I understand that you will be enrolling as a new student this year." She said as they started to climb. "I shall inform you now that if you are in my house, I will not tolerate the wearing of your sword."

Then again…

"Furthermore, Hogwarts has a strict dress code that you will be expected to adhere to. No hakamas."

"A samurai's hakama is a symbol of his station." Kusuke argued.

"But here you are not going to be a samurai, are you?" McGonagall countered. "Unless I'm mistaken, you are attending here as a student, and as far as I am aware, Hogwarts does not admit samurai as students, since they are taught in their own country."

"She has a point." Izuma-sempai said with an apologetic smirk.

"…Indeed."

"Ah, here we are."

McGonagall had stopped in front of a gargoyle just off the Grand Staircase on the second floor.

"Gummi Bear."

Kusuke stifled a snicker as the gargoyle sprang to life and leaped aside, revealing a moving spiral staircase. Apparently not planning to step on, McGonagall eyed Kusuke and Izuma-sempai and beckoned them aboard. Kusuke bowed his thanks and stepped up.

Shortly he found himself facing an ornate wooden door, from the other side of which he heard two voices: an old, sagely man's voice, and a much younger female voice, which was unmistakably familiar.

_No way._

Kusuke knocked, and the door swung open.

"Midori-chan!"

Indeed, his friend was standing in the Headmaster's office, but she wasn't wearing her hakama. She had changed into a black skirt and sweater-vest over a white cotton shirt. She wore a red-and-gold striped tie around her neck and a black cloak around her shoulders.

"Kusuke-kun! I was wondering when you'd get here!"

"Why are you here?" Kusuke asked. "I was assigned this mission alone."

"I'm on a separate mission. Dumbledore-sensei wrote to Kaduki-sama twice."

Kusuke looked at the old Headmaster. "Twice?"

"I believe in your culture," Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling, said from his high-backed chair, "It is customary to introduce oneself before conversation, correct?"

After rather hastier than usual introductions, Kusuke repeated his question.

"Ah yes. You see, I have two reasons for a Samurai Wizard to attend Hogwarts this year, and so I requested to separate Samurai Wizards. You are one, Midori-san is the other."

"Well, I know why I'm here, but why her?"

"Do you truly?" Dumbledore asked. "Forgive an old teacher, but perhaps you can confirm why you're here."

"…There has been increased Death Eater activity recently in Britain. First was the attack at this school two years ago by a known former Death Eater, then rumors of another former Death Eater infiltrating the school last year, then just recently the mob attack by figures wearing Death Eater robes and the Dark Mark appearing in the sky. You wrote to Kaduki-sama asking for my help in investigating these events."

Dumbledore smiled. "Very good, Natori-san, you keep up with events very well."

"I make it my business to know whatever I can about Voldemort and his followers. But you were rather vague in your letter to Kaduki-sama: all you said was 'investigate'. Exactly what does that entail?"

"…" Dumbledore got up from his desk and approached one of the many spindly-legged tables scattered around his office. Drawing his wand, he gave the small silver device atop the table a tap, and it whirred to life. Purple, green, and gold smoke began issuing from the device and the three different colored smokes began dancing with one another.

Kusuke's eyes went wide, something that Dumbledore did not miss. "You know what this is?"

Kusuke nodded. "A Dream Eater. It can tap into a person's dreams, no matter where they are, and visualize them. But it has to be close to someone first so that it can pinpoint where they are for extraction."

Dumbledore nodded. "Invented by Morgan La Fey in the Dark Ages, only one ever exists; thus is its nature. I discovered La Fey's notes for it in my youth and rebuilt it, and it has helped me battle Voldemort, and other threats, ever since. It cannot penetrate a Dark Wizard's dreams, unfortunately—a safety feature La Fey installed in case it was ever stolen. But there is one wizard whose dreams are truly invaluable. Can you guess whose?

Kusuke shook his head.

"Harry Potter."

Dumbledore tapped the device again, and the three colored smokes formed a ring. The ring filled with haze, and Kusuke saw what Harry Potter had once dreamed…

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

"Voldemort…" Kusuke said when it was all done and the machine was turned off. "And a mouse-ish man…"

"He is too weak now," Dumbledore said, but he has a plan to be revived. That plan revolves around Harry Potter. I need you to discover that plan, and twart it."

"Sensei?" Midori asked. "Wouldn't it be easier and less risky to destroy him now?"

"Indeed." Dumbledore answered. "However, to do so would leave Voldemort's plan still in play, and a well-laid plan without a leader is even worse than one with a leader."

"A ship can do much more damage without a helmsman than with."

"Exactly. Once the plan is foiled, we will find Voldemort and kill him. Until then, though, for the safety of the students here at Hogwarts, especially young Harry, we must meet Voldemort's threat and remove it."

"You still haven't explained why Midori-san is here." Izuma-sempai said from the door. Kusuke jumped; he'd forgotten that Izuma-sempai was here.

"That is simply a matter of foresight." He went back to his desk, but rather than sitting in the high-backed chair, he retrieved a very, _very_ old hat. "Kusuke-san?"

Kusuke approached, and Dumbledore placed the hat on his head. It slipped over his ears, and Kusuke heard a voice whisper in his ear.

"_Interesting…much older than I'm used to sorting…let's see…my, my, what courage lies in your heart, yet tempered by a cold calculating mind…such power lies within you, very impressive…inherited by your father, eh? And determination…such a fierce determination…I wonder where you should be? I suggest…SLYTHERIN!"_

The last was yelled out loud, and Kusuke thought it was over, but at the last second, just as Dumbledore was about to pull the hat from Kusuke's head, the hat then yelled, "_Wait!"_

Kusuke could almost feel the hat sifting through his mind. _"What is this? A room in your mind that I cannot reach? I have never seen such a thing…yet the lock is loose, and I can see just a tiny bit inside…_

_"AAAAAHHHHHH!"_

The hat released an ear-splitting scream, and Kusuke had to rip the hat off his head simply to get the voice away from his ringing ear. He threw it to the ground where it continued to scream, albeit softer by the moment.

"What happened?" Dumbledore asked.

"I…I don't know…" Kusuke's heart was hammering, and not from the hat's scream. When the hat had pried open that door, Kusuke felt something…something powerful…and evil…

Kusuke realized that he was breathing hard and in a cold sweat. He also realized that Midori was hugging him, and Izuma-sempai was kneeling with a hand on his shoulder.

Dumbledore summoned the hat with a Summoning Charm, and lowered the still-whimpering hat onto his own head.

"Are you ok?" Izuma-sempai asked intensely.

"Y-yeah…I think so…" For some reason, Kusuke realized that his hand was clamped over Kagekiri's hilt. When he noticed it, he released it.

"…The Sorting Hat's gone silent." Dumbledore said after he pulled the hat off his head. "It won't say a word about what happened." He stared straight into Kusuke's eyes, and Kusuke got the feeling that he was being scanned. So Dumbledore was a Legilimens? Interesting. Kusuke's first instinct was to use Occlumency, but he realized that he didn't have the strength. "Any idea what happened?"

"…It…it found something in my mind…a locked room, it said…"

Midori and Izuma-sempai exchanged shocked looks.

"It said that the lock was loose enough for it to peek inside, and then it started screaming…"

"Come on," Izuma-sensei said, "you need some rest. Long journey…" He hoisted Kusuke up and wrapped Kusuke's right arm around his shoulder to help provide support, then he spoke to Dumbledore. "We'll have his supplies ready by the start of term."

And they all vanished…

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

Ok, before people start getting on my ass over this, I'll go ahead and explain since I doubt I'll have a chance to later. Izuma's method of vanishing at the end of this chapter is through dormant Portkey that he activated to take them all back to Tosa, kind of like a reverse homing beacon. If I were a wizard, I would always keep a supply of small, coin-like disks that can be activated to immediately teleport me to a pre-determined place as a quick means of escape in case Disapparition is impossible, and that's where I got this idea.

Now a list and explanation of Japanese honorifics:

-sama: very high respect; equivalent is 'Lord' or 'Lady'; technically speaking, both Azuma and Orihime Kaduki should be addressed as 'Kaduki-sama', but since English has no way of differentiating gender through that honorific, I decided to use Kaduki-sama when referring to Azuma, and Lady Kaduki when referring to Orihime

-san: rudimentary respect, usually used when speaking to someone either not familiar with or with whom you have a moderate amount of respect for; equivalent is Mr. or Mrs.; also, some dialects use –han in place of –san

-kun: friendly honorific used for either a close male friend or a younger male; sometimes also used with tomboys, but to do so can sometimes be viewed as an insult

-chan: same as –kun, but with females; again, can be used with boys, but usually refers to the boy as overly effeminate

-sempai: already explained

No honorific: in Japanese, no honorific is only used between two people who are very well acquainted or intimate; to use it with anyone else is a huge insult


	3. Ch 2: Not Your Typical Slytherin

Chapter 2

Not Your Typical Slytherin

Izuma-sempai's Portkey proved to be too much for Kusuke. As soon as he landed, Kusuke vomited and passed out.

Sleep never had agreed with Kusuke. As far as Kusuke could remember, he'd never gotten a proper night's sleep. His dreams were always very dark, to the point where he almost oculdn't see them, but what he could see always woke him up. This time, however, perhaps because he was unconscious, not asleep, he could see perfectly for the first time.

He was standing on a grassy plain in the middle of the night, and before him stood a man that Kusuke knew was familiar—someone he should know—yet he could not recognize him. One thing Kusuke knew for certain: the man before him was a Samurai Wizard.

"You won't win." The familiar stranger said. "My son will stop you."

Kusuke laughed evilly, and he realized that he was simply a passenger in this dream. "Thou art a fool. Thy son hath not the power to stop me from fulfilling mine own goals. Twas not for thee, I wouldst have conquered him long ago." Kusuke reached out his hand, and touched an invisible barrier, but it was more than that: Kusuke's hand exploded in pain, and he withdrew it immediately. "Thy accursed barrier is strong, yet it weakens by the day. And that thing…whatever it did advanced me months of hard work…Soon I will be free…"

Kusuke woke with a jolt, his own evil laugh still ringing in his ears.

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

"So Kusuke's dark powers stir." Kaduki-sama said quietly.

"Yes, my Lord." Izuma said from his kneel. "I felt them spike after he wore the Sorting Hat. It won't be long until they begin to manifest."

"What do you suggest?"

"…I don't think there's anything we can do. After all, Sasuke-sempai did what he could, but even he knew that it would not last forever. All we can do is keep going as we have been."

"…Very well. Thank you for your report. Please send Midori in."

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

King's Cross station looked different from the Japanese train stations Kusuke was used to. For one, it was far less crowded. A Japanese train station was usually standing –room only, but King's Cross actually had _benches_!

Midori sat on one just for the novelty of it. "Wow…never thought I'd be sitting in a train station!" She gave Kusuke a goofy grin, and Kusuke couldn't help but smile back.

"And hopefully here you won't have to worry about _chikans_ trying to feel you up."

Now Midori's smile turned sadistic. "Not that I had a lot of trouble before."

Kusuke laughed. "Yeah, no one's tried it after what happened to the first one. I think they're till rebuilding the station from that incident."

It was at this moment, that Kusuke saw a rather large group of teenagers walk by led by an older woman, and all of them (except for two of the men and the woman) lugged carts loaded with trunks not unlike Kusuke and Midori's…and they had two owls.

"Is that them?" Midori asked.

Kusuke nodded.

"Then it's time to go."

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

Their mission was simple: Kusuke had to get close to Harry Potter. But Dumbledore had foreseen that Kusuke would be sorted into Slytherin house, and knew that without help, the old Gryffindor/Slytherin rivalry would defeat him before he began. So he recruited Midori, whom he correctly predicted would be sorted into Gryffindor to help Kusuke get close to Harry.

What Kusuke didn't anticipate was Draco Malfoy.

Almost since he stepped onto the train, Kusuke found himself inundated by fellow Slytherins, and was subsequently pulled into a compartment with other Slytherins, including Draco Malfoy and his two thug bodyguards, Crabbe and Goyle.

"So you just transferred to Hogwarts this year?" Draco drawled.

Kusuke nodded.

"Are you here for the Triwizard Tournament?"

Kusuke kept silent, not wanting to lie, but Draco took that as an affirmative.

"Can he even enter?" A girl named Pansy Parkinson asked.

"I don't see why not. Father didn't say anything about new transfers not being allowed to enter."

"If they told me I couldn't, I'd like to see them try to enforce it."

Draco seemed to be impressed by this. "So what family are you from?"

"Family?" Kusuke asked, confused.

"Yes, your wizard family. You are Pureblooded, right?"

Kusuke could feel their stares, but refused to lie. "No."

Four pairs of eyes widened at him.

"Both of my parents were wizards, yes, but my father's parents were both muggles."

"Your father was a Mudblood?" Draco, seemingly unconsciously, slid a short distance away from Kusuke.

"…From what I understand, that is an insult here in Britain. I recommend that you don't say such a thing about my father again. Understand?"

Kusuke kept his voice calm, but his face said what he truly felt: _Insult my father again, and you will die a slow, painful death_.

"Y-yeah…No problem…"

"So are you going to enter, Draco?" Pansy asked.

Kusuke relaxed, and so did Draco after a moment. "I might. I mean, I _am _the one best suited to represent Hogwarts in the tournament."

"Aren't you only 14?" Kusuke asked. "I thought 17 was considered an of-age wizard here in Britain."

"Hmph. Age doesn't matter, only talent. And what do you mean, 'in Britain?' What's the age in Japan?"

"Fourteen."

They all stared at him again.

"Samurai Wizards start their training much earlier than the rest of the world…I started when I was 7."

"But then—what are you doing here?"

"Red tape. Your government won't let me perform magic outside of Hogwarts until I turn 17 and pass the birds."

"Birds?" Pansy asked. Then her mouth went 'oh' in realization. "You must mean the O.W.L.s!"

Kusuke shrugged. "I guess. Honestly, I don't care. Me being here is just a formality…I already know more magic than any other student, and probably some of the professors, too. Not to mention I'm just more experienced."

"Experienced?"

"Samurai Wizards do a lot more than wizards in Britain. I mean, let's face it…in Britain, what career fields are there for wizards?"

The four exchanged looks.

"Precisely. The reason your Ministry of Magic is so huge is because it has to be…it's where the majority of wizarding jobs are. But Samurai Wizards have our own very important role to fulfill:

Monster slayer."

"Monster slayer?" Crabbe asked, to Kusuke's surprise. Kusuke hadn't thought he had the brainpower to keep up with a conversation that didn't involve visual aids.

"Japan is well-known for having a whole host of magical creatures…snow women, kappas, multi-headed snakes…and most of these monsters like to eat people. So even after Japan was 'modernized', the Samurai Wizards kept their own traditions so that we could keep protecting people from these monsters."

"So you hunt monsters?"

Kusuke nodded. "Since I was 11. Most children don't start until they're 13, but I was powerful enough that they started me earlier."

"…You need to enter." Malfoy said, his face in open awe.

"What?"

"The tournament! You need to enter the Triwizard Tournament! If a Slytherin became Hogwarts champion, oh man, we'd nail it to those goody-goody Gryffindors! It would almost make up for four years of Potter worship! And then, if you won? Slytherin would be known as the greatest house for years!"

Kusuke rubbed his chin. "What do you have against the Gryffindors, anyway?"

"They're a bunch of arrogant, holier-than-thou prats. Just because they have the whole 'courage' thing, they think they're better than everyone else, especially us Slytherins."

"…Have you ever asked a Gryffindor if they think they're better than Slytherins?"

"They'd never admit it, of course, but we all know that's how they feel. But Slytherins are the best, and we'll prove it to them."

Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy all whooped their agreement, and Kusuke sighed inwardly. _If this is the relationship between the Gryffindors and the Slytherins, this may be harder than I thought it would be._

"What about the other two houses?"

"What? Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff?" Malfoy waved his hand dismissively. "Ravenclaw may have the brains, but they don't know how to use them properly. And Hufflepuff is just a bunch of leftovers, they don't matter."

"I disagree. I think a person determines his own worth. I mean, aren't there any Hufflepuff students who you respect?"

Draco snorted. "No. The only students worth knowing are Slytherins."

"Ah. Glad you cleared that up. Excuse me." Kusuke needed to get out of there before he wiped that smug look off of Draco Malfoy's face. Besides, he needed to change out of his Muggle clothes into his school uniform.

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

Once he was in his school uniform, Kusuke set off to find Midori. He searched for all of two minutes until he found her in the same compartment as Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville. Kusuke knocked, then slid the compartment door open.

"Oh hey!" Midori said, only slightly surprised. Kusuke figured that she had sensed him coming but hadn't expected him to try to enter.

"Hey, it's you." Harry said when he recognized Kusuke. "You're that guy from the World Cup…Kronos?"

"Kusuke. Mind?"

"Nah, come on—" Ron said at first, then he spotted the Slytherin badge on Kusuke's cloak, "Actually, I think we're all full."

Kusuke stared at him. "Judging before you know me, Ron?"

"What are you—" Harry spotted his badge, too. "Oh."

"Not all Slytherins are cut from the same cloth, you know." Kusuke argued.

"Yeah!" Midori said, incensed. "I've known Kusuke since we were kids, he's a good guy."

"Oh yeah? What do you think of Hermione?" Ron said cruely.

"I think I don't know her yet. But you…I already don't like you, because you think I'm scum before I even give you a good reason to. All because of some stupid badge on my cloak, or the colors of my ties. I thought Gryffindors were better than that."

"We are." Hermione said, glaring at Ron. "Come on in."

Kusuke waited until he got Ron's go-ahead. Ron glared at him.

"One crack about Hermione, and I will personally curse you into next year."

Kusuke couldn't help but smile. "Deal." And he took a seat.

"So you're from Japan, too?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, I came over with Midori."

"What are you," Ron asked, "her boyfriend?"

Midori blushed profusely and turned away from them.

"No, we aren't, just close friends."

Hermione slapped Ron's arm. "How can you ask them that? I swear you're so thick!"

"Ow, what was that for?"

"So how long have you two been going out?" Kusuke asked him.

Hermione blushed even more than Midori, and Ron started mouthing like a fish.

Kusuke grinned like a cat. "Got you."

Harry, Neville, Kusuke, and Midori laughed. Even Hermione struggled not to laugh.

It was to this scene that the lunch trolley decided to make a visit, and Harry bought a bunch of Cauldron Cakes to share with everybody. Kusuke passed one to Midori before accepting one for himself. The cakes were filled with strawberry preserves, and they were utterly delicious.

(Mmm….Strawberry Cauldron Cakes….*Homer Simpson drool*)

After several of Harry, Ron, and Hermione's friends dropped by, talk turned again to the Quidditch World Cup…all except for Hermione, who buried herself in a book and started practicing a charm.

"Gran didn't want to go," Neville said, looking miserable. "Wouldn't buy tickets. It sounded amazing though."

"It was," said Ron. "Look at this, Neville…"

He rummaged in his trunk up in the luggage rack and pulled out a miniature figure of Viktor Krum.

"Oh _wow_," Neville said as Ron tipped the walking toy into Neville's hand.

"We saw him right up close, as well," said Ron. "We were in the Top Box—"

"For the first and last time in your life, Weasley."

Draco had appeared in the door. He seemed ready to start jeering at Harry and his friends, until he spotted Kusuke sitting across from them.

"What are you doing in here?"

"A question I could easily put to you. I, at least, have a reason." He put his hand on Midori's shoulder. "Midori-chan is a childhood friend, and I'm visiting her. What's your excuse?"

"The girl? Really?" Draco looked skeptical. "That's funny, because it looks like you're getting chummy with a bunch of Gryffindors."

Kusuke calmly stood and faced Draco squarely. "And if I am?"

"Slytherins—proper Slytherins, anyway—don't associate with scum."

"Then that makes him a proper Slytherin." Hermione said from her book. "He's associating with us instead of you."

_Good one!_

"Why you filthy little—Ugh!"

Draco was interrupted by the appearance of a pitch-black sword at his throat. It was then that everybody realized that Kusuke had gotten close enough to put an inch of steel from his sheathe and press it to Draco's neck.

"I thought I warned you about that before. Do I need to make my warning more…" Kusuke pressed harder, and Draco's flesh sizzled slightly, "permanent?"

Draco retreated, his hand at his throat.

Kusuke shut the compartment door behind him and returned his sword to his belt. He turned to a not-unexpected sight: Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville were both utterly shocked, and Midori simply looked exacerbated.

This scene lasted all of three seconds, then Ron and Harry were both on their feet, cheering Kusuke and slapping him on the back. Apparently the badge he wore was forgiven.

[~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~]

By the time they arrived at Hogwarts, Kusuke was afraid the train was going to hydroplane right off the tracks and into the nearest building. The storm had become impressive, and Kusuke had to conjure umbrellas for his new friends.

"Firs' years, this way!" Came a voice in the darkness carrying a lantern. Kusuke was about to do battle with a hinkypunk, until he realized that there was actually a bearded face illuminated by the lantern.

"Hi, Hagrid!" Harry yelled.

"All righ', Harry?" Hagrid bellowed back, waving. "See yeh at the feast if we don' drown!"

"Oooh, I wouldn't fancy crossing the lake in this weather," Hermione said, shivering. The four started off, and Kusuke and Midori followed.

"Why would you want to cross the lake?" Midori asked.

"That's how first years get to the castle their first time." Neville answered. "They ride in boats with Hagrid across the lake."

Kusuke looked in the direction of the lake. "Midori-chan…we may have to do some lifeguard duty tonight."

Midori giggled, and they reached a line of carriages being towed by Thestrals. Kusuke and Midori kept a wary eye on them (they'd had a run-in with a wild herd 3 years ago), but climbed in a carriage with Harry and his friends all the same…


End file.
